Jcc Delays Vote On Concrete Plant

JAMES CITY (COUNTY) — Supervisors, not wanting to set any precedent, deferred action Monday night on a firm's proposal to build a concrete plant between Toano and Norge.

Before a standing-room-only crowd, the supervisors voted 4-1 to defer a vote on the proposal from Jack L. Massie Contractor Inc. The delay is to allow the firm's officials time to address the concerns of the planning staff and adjacent homeowners, both of whom recommended denial of the proposal.

Judith Knudson cast the sole dissenting vote, saying no matter how the proposal is revised, "it is going to be in the same place."

The deferral "is a matter of consistency and fair play," said Supervisor Thomas Norment Jr. He said deferral when requested by the developer has been standard procedure in the two years he has been on the board. "We should not modify our internal protocol."

Supervisor Jack Edwards expressed concerns that the proposal will likely adversely affect the environment, create dust problems and be inconsistent with the mostly residential adjacent area. "It is unlikely the proposal will be approved in the long run," Edwards said.

But Edwards asked that the application be deferred, forcing any changes to the proposal to be resubmitted to the Planning Commission.

The firm, a road site utility contractor and distributor of concrete products in the county since 1964, wants to build a concrete plant on 51 acres on Cokes Lane off Richmond Road. The $15 million development would include a concrete plant, warehouse and office space and building supplies.

Jack Massie's son, Gary, who is also a Planning Commission member, told supervisors a deferral would allow him to figure out how to use a newly acquired nine-acre property adjacent to the proposed plant site. He suggested the additional acreage could help create a buffer that county planning staff and Mirror Lake residents asked for.

Monday's public hearing was on a special use permit and a rezoning of the property from agriculture to industrial that Massie needs to build the concrete plant.

Susan L. McCleary, spokeswoman for Mirror Lake residents, asked supervisors to stop Massie now, noting that further delay will not resolve the larger issues in this case.

"If you want people to support the middle class in the area, the county better be prepared to protect the middle class neighborhoods," McCleary said to applause from the gathering.